


Flower Scented Softener

by Yuanoe



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Fluff, Laundry, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-21
Updated: 2018-09-21
Packaged: 2019-07-14 23:00:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,670
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16050338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yuanoe/pseuds/Yuanoe
Summary: Chenle is a confused foreigner who doesn’t know how to use the laundry machines at the laundromat. Lucky for him, cute mysterious stranger Jisung is ready to help him.





	Flower Scented Softener

**Author's Note:**

> au idea was created by @softforlove on twitter! she has so many cute au ideas, definitely check her out! i wrote this in about an hour so there's probably grammatical mistakes but i hope you enjoy it!

Honestly, Chenle had so many things that he missed that he had neglected while actually living in Shanghai. The playground outside of his family's apartment, the bamboo garden that overtook his backyard, his grandparents who would dot on him regardless of his growing age and height. But most importantly, his mom doing his laundry for him.

Coming to Korea had meant he would have to figure out how to wash his own clothes. At first, when he had settled into his apartment with his cousin Renjun, it seemed like a conquerable task. However, that dream was quickly crushed when Chenle discovered there were no laundry machines within the apartment but instead on the first floor of the complex. When the time had come that Chenle would have to brace the difficult task of washing his clothes, he knew that at least he would have Renjun to go with him to show him the ropes.

"I can't go."

"But Renjun," Chenle whined while holding his basket of laundry, the colours mixing in with each other without any barrier of separation between the shades. Renjun simply sighed while digging into the coin jar they keep on the bar counter of the kitchen. "I don't know how to do it myself."

"And this is why Auntie shouldn't have spoiled you so much," Renjun commented while setting a few coins onto the counter. "Yukhei is coming over for a project and I can't just leave him in the apartment by himself. I'm sure you'll be able to figure out how to work a washing machine. Just put the coin in, use the fabric softener, and you're done."

"What if all my clothes shrink and can only fit a miniature human?" Chenle continued to whine but took the coins from the counter, slipping them into his pocket with a pout.

"You mean a baby?" Renjun asked. Chenle thought for a second before nodding, leading Renjun to his second sigh of the night just before his phone went off. "Then we'll give them to Jeno's cats. Now go."

Letting out a sigh of his own, Chenle made his way out of the apartment as Renjun picked up a call from Yukhei. Rolling his eyes, Chenle began making his way down the stairs of his apartment complex to the daunting laundry room kept at the end of the hallway past the lobby.

"I can do this," Chenle muttered to himself while setting down his basket in front of an unoccupied washing machine. "I can't do this."

The instructions left on the top of the washing machine looked more like hieroglyphics than the Hangul that he had crash coursely learned before arriving, the black ink making fun of Chenle's inability to understand it. Each syllable that he read out sounded even more foreign to his ears. It must have been over ten minutes of reciting the words over and over as if the more he read them the more they'd magically make sense before Chenle heard a voice other than his own. "Are you okay?"

Chenle snapped his head in the direction of the voice only to be met by a boy that looked around his age, carrying a laundry basket of his own stood in the doorway of the dimly lit laundry room. Blonde bangs haphazardly covering the boy's eyes though they still conveyed evident confusion directed towards Chenle's direction. The boy made his way towards Chenle's still unloaded washing machine as Chenle managed to snap out of his surprised.

"I'm fine."

"Is the washing machine broken?" The boy asked while setting down his basket alongside Chenle's dirty clothes. He tilted his head while opening the top, peering in to appraise the possible damage.

"No," Chenle said no louder than a meek whisper. His new found company turned his head to look at him again, causing Chenle to slowly grow self-conscious under the unspoken scrutiny the boy must be thinking. "I just don't know how to use it."

"You don't know how to use a washing machine?" The stranger asked, eyebrows shooting up in surprise. Chenle felt his face slowly heating up, blush slowly creeping up his neck. Softly nodding, Chenle was wondering when the next plane to Shanghai left and if he'd be physically able to run all the way to the airport to escape from this embarrassment.

"I tried reading the instructions but my Korean isn't that good." Chenle murmured, rubbing the back of his neck with his sweater covered hand, eyes suddenly finding the spotted tiles of the floor interesting. Instead of the ridicule he had expected, all he got in reply was a soft chuckle emanating next to him.

"Do you want help?" Chenle's head shot up once again to see a faint pink scattered across the boy's cheeks before enthusiastically nodding his head, flashing a bright smile of gratitude. "I'm Jisung."

"Chenle."

"Chun la?"

"Chenle."

"Chun li?"

"Chen-le."

"Chenle." Jisung tried again, the faint pink now being replaced with evident red as he made another attempt at pronouncing Chenle's name.

"Close enough." Chenle snorted while letting a soft smile grace his lips before turning his attention towards the dirty clothes beside him. "So how does this machine work?"

* * *

  
"I can't believe you didn't know you needed to separate the colours."

"I thought you just threw them all in at once!"

"Do you want to look like valentines day every time you finish your laundry? Can I get the fabric softener?" Jisung sighed after Chenle had almost allowed a red shirt to join the whites. After being chastised by Jisung more than he'd like to admit, Chenle had taken to pouting while following the instructions of his new friend. "Flower scented softener? That’s cute."

The passing comment caused the familiar heat to find it's way to Chenle's face once again, this time beginning at the tips of his ears as Jisung glanced over at him. Turning away quickly, Chenle attempted to busy himself with separating the colours from the darks as Jisung began on his own laundry. The only sounds in the room now the sound of the washing machine and Chenle's quiet mumbling.

"Did you say something?"

"No."

"Unless the washing machine speaks mandarin now, I think you did."

"Korea has quite advanced technology then, how amazing." Chenle weakly deflected while finishing his task, glancing to look at Jisung. Instead of being met with Jisung's side profile as Chenle had expected, he was graced with the scene of Jisung leaning against the washing machine, arms crossed with a faint smile gracing his lips. "What?"

"Nothing." Jisung replied while quickly turning away, shifting his thumb in a strange position before it found its way back to its proper shape.

"How did you do that?" Chenle exclaimed, face contouring into surprise and pure confusion as he looked at his own thumb to imitate Jisung's previous movement.

"Just-" Jisung started before popping his thumb in a position that anyone would consider broken. Chenle stared in amazement before bouncing up and down, attempting to recreate the shape. "No not like that."

"Then like what?"

"Just like-"

"Like what!"

* * *

 

"-And that's how I found myself half danging into a lion's den at the Shanghai zoo."

"How did Renjun even manage to sneak past security?" Jisung asked, eyes wide in amazement as Chenle recounted the multiple misadventures of the duo.

"If you ever meet Renjun, you'd be willing to sign away your soul before realizing that he's the devil himself." Chenle commented while taking out the last load of laundry into his basket to be folded later (read: forgotten and left in the basket until further notice). "What floor do you live on?"

"Fifth."

"Me too." Chenle replied with a soft smile that seemed to have found a permanent place on his face in the presence of Jisung. Jisung returned the smile as they made their way up to their shared floor. "I'll race you!"

"That's not fair!" Jisung called as Chenle had bounded up the flight of stairs before announcing the battle.

* * *

 

"I totally won that." Chenle stated as they both caught their breathes walking down the hallway of the fifth floor.

"After you almost pushed me down the stairs!"

"Collateral damage." Chenle shrugged.

"You can't read the laundry machine but you know how to say collateral damage." Jisung commented with a roll of his eyes.

Chenle chuckled while slightly bumping hips and laundry baskets with his new friend. Chenle's pace began to decrease before finding himself in front of his apartment door, turning to Jisung who seemed to have found his apartment as well "How coincidental Jisung Park. We're neighbors."

"So you're the new neighbors. Would it happen to be you or Renjun imitating a dolphin at 6am?"

"Guilty." Chenle answered while managing to place his key into the lock without dropping his basket. The defined click could be heard from inside as Chenle began to turn the doorknob. As he was about to enter his home, a small cough caught his attention.

"Could I. It'd be great if. Would you like to-" Jisung began before seeming to backtrack and rethink his statement. Chenle raised an eyebrow as he gave his full attention to the struggling boy across from him. Jisung took a deep breath before making eye contact with Chenle and managing out a very distinct, "Would you like to hang out sometime? With me?"

"I would love to." Chenle replied, noticing the immediate deflation of tension that Jisung had managed to build up in his shoulders. "You'll know where to find me."

"Yeah. Well, goodnight."

"Goodnight Jisung." Chenle smiled, watching the boy enter his apartment, not taking his eyes off of him until the door was completely closed before opening his own.

Maybe learning to do the laundry wasn't as troublesome as he had imagined growing up.

* * *

 

"SO THIS IS YOUR PROJECT?"

"You could have knocked!"

"I live here too! I didn't think I'd walk in on you making out with Yukhei on our couch!"

"Don't make me throw you into another lion's den!


End file.
